Author: Distracted Damsel

Literal miles, on the bike that is. This new journey of mine into the cycling world is really something. But they, whoever they are, did lie to me. Have you heard the saying it’s like riding a bike? It just means that it comes naturally. Well, these last two weeks have been nothing but natural peddling around town. There are so many things to figure out and adjust to. Roll with me through the week.

The first thing is first. I didn’t decide to ride a bike just for the fun of things. While I figure out my new car options, I am using environmentally friendly transportation. Way back in the dusty corners of the garage, we got out my ride. My dad and brother in law cleaned it up and gave it a test run. All set to go, a little old, but the basic pieces and parts were good to go. A little online Amazon shopping to complete the look, I got a helmet and some gloves, safety first.

When I say I haven’t ridden a bike in over a decade, I mean it. Random spin classes on a stationary bike do not count. Getting back on that seat and testing it out myself was a sight. I am sure the neighborhood got a good laugh from. I wobbled all over the place, unsure of the peddles and footing. Looked like a kid who just took off the training wheels. After about a mile or so, I did get in the groove. Even after a week and a half, I’m still not 100% balanced, but I am way more sure of myself.

Some things you don’t realize are lacking until you have to use them. I, for one, never realized that so many streets are lacking pathways or sidewalks. Or what about the sidewalks that didn’t plan for giant electric or light poles right in the middle of the walking space. Riding in a safe lane can be difficult. I live in a quiet neighborhoo, but my job, which is 2.64 miles away, is on a busy six lane street. The main street crosses over the freeway and narrows to a two lane street with gravel driveways. The only way to not be off roading on the side of the road I had to find quiet side streets.

So far, the tally of miles is 45 miles, give or take. Work days are a little over 5 miles, but on Saturday, I took the bike on a longer ride to get it looked over at the cycle shop. I knew from the age of the bike and riding it for a week that the break pads were shot. I was correct, so I got those fixed and new handle grips to get me through the week. I will take it in for a full work up after work Friday. I also had them help me adjust the seat height to make things easier on my knees and legs.

There are a few things I am still struggling with. Riding is a literal pain in the you know what. My bum has not adjusted to that hard seat. A little better each ride, I’m still working my way up to ride out of the saddle, standing. Helps to stretch the legs. The other thing is my appetite. My metabolism is going up the more I peddle, the longer the ride, I am constantly hungry. I will have to find that magical cocktail of vitamins and protein to offset the extra calories I’m burning and the muscles I’m building. Does anyone have suggestions?

Overall, it takes some getting used to, but I have been enjoying it. The weather, minus the rain and snow today in Las Vegas, has been really nice. I am saving money, and I am getting in daily exercise. I have a solid 30 minutes each way to listen to audios or think about my to do list. Just quiet time to get my thoughts in order and absorb the sunshine. I would recommend anyone give it a spin. Ha ha pun intended. 🤣

Just to be clear I am not wearing an orange safety vest and waving my arms around. I’m not placing construction cones or turning a stop sign. But I am however redirecting my thoughts this week. It is not easy to reroute my regularly scheduled thoughts but I am going to share with you some of what I have had to guide this week.

I am a little over a week into my no debit card February. What I have realized is I have a spending problem based on my moods and bad habits. I have had to think about every trip to work, every trip to the store and even about fun things coming up. Maybe you can relate to some of these.

If I know I have a long day ahead of me, I want to stop and grab a coffee or an energy drink. Thats $3 to $8 dollars spent before I start the day.

I had a long, trying day at work where orders were wrong or late and the task list never seems to end. So too tired to cook and we head thru the drive-thru. There goes $8 to $15 not even for good food.

Three different friends ask you out for drinks, dinner or to hangout in one week. Do you go for all three, narrow it down or push them off? $25 to $75 depending on the trip and the friends.

Those are just some of the food related things I have caught myself wanting to swipe for in the last week or so. But I have also thought about the things that I think I need to buy for home or work. Things that could be bought later on or things that I dont actually need but only want because they would be nice.

Spring cleaning is just around the corner and I am in the mood to finish cleaning and sorting the garage. immediately my thought is that I need to go to Costco and buy the big black and yellow, stackable bins. We have about 10 of them already in their nice little places in the storage unit. And they do make everything easy to find. But while I am saving up for a car, wouldn’t regular boxes I can get free at work be a suitable idea? In case you had a doubt, IT IS better to save the $50 and use the boxes.

There are some things that can not be avoid though and for me I did have to spend a little bit on my safety gear. I havent mentioned this yet but i have decided to ride my bicycle to work while I am saving money for my new car this month. The weather here in Vegas is nice in the spring and the added benefit of 2 workouts a day to me is worth it. I’m only 2.5 miles from work. Anyways I do ride on one busy street and the morning ride is dark and chilly. So I had to purchase a bike helmet and a pair of biking gloves so I can feel my fingers. I wanted to add a new pair of bike leggings, a new jacket and maybe a new pair of shoes designed for biking. My bad habit is to over shop when really I only need 2 things.

There are more examples of the habits I am seeing in my spending. But really they are habits in my life that I am noticing. Things that you dont realize you do until you look under the microscope. I hope I am not the only one that has been taking stock of things. Maybe you can relate, maybe you dont think those are bad habits, maybe your budget allows for more of the fun little stuff. Let me know what you overspend on or any tricks you have used in your budget to change your thinking. What directions have you turned?

I think we can all agree that more money is what we need. And I agree with that, but what if we need more money because we aren’t using the money we have in the best ways possible? I, by far, am not a financial guru. No where close. In fact, if I am being honest, I am always paycheck to paycheck, and that can be so frustrating. You plan for your bills, and something unexpected comes up and sets you back.

Well, my unexpected this week is my car. Luckily, it only left me dead on my street and not on a busy road or freeway. But as I sit here waiting for the tow truck provided thru my insurance, I am wondering what it will cost me or if I can afford a new car. It’s been an interesting weekend trying to figure that out and enjoy my birthday.

That being said, I took a hard look at my spending for the last couple of months. And there are some cutbacks that need to be made. It’s crazy to see how the little things add up like the gas station snack stops and the eating out. I truly thought I had been doing a good job on my budget, but looking at the debits and the swipes, it tells a different story.

So where am I going with all this? Well, let me tell you, I am not hitting a Wendy’s or a pit stop. I am not stopping for groceries every other day but making sure I meal plan. I am going to start a challenge this month to get my spending and budget under control so that when a car dies, I have some options. Or if I want to take a random trip, it’s already in the budget. Practical and silly things, but to have the peace of mind will be so worth it.

For the month of February, I am cutting up the debit card, so to speak. Of course, I will need to get groceries and gas. But I do not want to use the card for anything else. I want to know exactly what money I am spending and will give myself a cash allowance for each week. I want to see what I can save up in a month’s time. I am going to share the journey with you as well as the budget that I put together and the printable budget I will post on etsy. Follow me to see how this goes and hopefully join in 🙂

I dont know about you but so far January has been kind of crazy. Well I would say more bumpy than crazy. First two weeks I was off to a running start, nothing was going to get me down. Insert the bug that is going around. Everyone around me got sick with something. I managed to scrape by but have been busy looking after everyone. So busy that between work and that I havent been able to post.

I did have some me time in there this last weekend which catches me up on the crazy. I was entertaining a friend for five days. We took a quick but fateful trip down to Arizona. It was a very bumpy ride. The idea was to go down to Lake Havasu for the hot air balloon festival that I have been wanting to check out for years. I finally made the plans but the universe had different.

From starters, 15 miles to our half way point snow started coming down. Believe it or not it does snow in the desert and with my luck I found it. I am not a strong driver in the snow, it freaks me out. So white knuckling it for 15 miles to the first gas station I found was not fun. Snow is pretty but leave me at home for it. We didn’t get to the lake that night and ended stying in a really low budget motel but hey, we didn’t end up in a ditch.

The second part of the drive to the lake wasn’t great. My engine light came on. I figured it was a combination of things, the added weight, the elevation and the cold. So we stopped and checked at autozone and they said to google and answer. Epic fail. Had no choice but to drive it but it changed our plans. Didn’t risk the drive to the Grand Canyon after that. The sky was clear but the wind was insane.

Two days of a high wind advisory so we didn’t se any hot air balloons except a few that remained on the ground. So I guess the festival is still on my list. Anyway we came back to vegas, safe in the car other than the engine light and we did the tourist thing. It was fun but I have done it for so many friends that I kind of dont like living here. Tired and exhausted I hit the ground running Tuesday for work.

It’s Saturday. The day before my birthday. I have plans with my boyfriend tomorrow but today after the crazy of the last two weeks I am just going to relax. I hope that your January has been off to a good start. I know thru the last few weeks I have delayed some of my goals and plans but I am back on them. Full steam ahead! Let me know how things are going for you 🙂

You are probably thinking “yeah we get it already” because you might think I mean growth on a personal level. Well, yes, but this time I mean on a physical plant level. Lets get our hands dirty and bring some life into the house.

At work, I will be moving into a clean new office and will have a nice desk that I can make my own. Work can be tough some days but having a spot for yourself and making it feel like you can be really fun not to mention making it a bit more tolerable. The new office will still have the normal fluorescent lighting but it will also have a window. So what better way to customize my desk and decorate a new space then to make a terrarium.

Terrariums are great to have for a few different reasons. Of course they are pretty mini gardens but they also are easy to maintain, require little watering and can grown in all kinds of lighting. Plants are also good for purifying air. Sometimes my office will smell like paint or thinners do to the nature of my job. Just an added benefit that these tiny plants will help take some of that out of the air. I’ve included a link for the benefits plants and terrariums offer below.

You dont really need much skill or talent to put one together. In fact, I chose to create mine this week with the help of my nephew. He likes project time with Auntie. I stopped into the dollar store to find a small glass bowl for his and some of the little add ins for our project. Then I went to Lowes to get the succulents for our terrariums. I am sure there are many different types of succulents or small plants that can be used. I pulled out a few that caught my eye. I will say this project wasn’t inexpensive after I got about 16 to fill our 3 containers. But I digress.

Of course I didn’t go into this just thinking I needed plants. There are a couple things that you need to grab if you are going to create your own mini garden. The basics are a glass jar or container, river rocks, activated charcoal, water, succulents or other small plants of your choosing and any fun pieces for flare. You will see what I mean by flare. Lol. The charcoal will help hinder the growth of bad bacteria or mold since it is a humid climate in the jar.

Start with layering your river rocks or pebbles. We added some blue and green glass pebbles just for fun. You can leave a hole in the center to fill next with the activated charcoal. You want about an inch for good growth of the roots. I added an additional layer of indoor soil to mine on top of the charcoal but you dont have to. next you take the plants that you chose and add them in. When you remove the plant from its original sprouted container you do want to shake out or break up a bit of the dirt and roots to allow the root to breathe and get used to the new soil.

There are so many ways to make it your own. You can do different layers of colored pebbles, add in moss or even add in little fairy creatures. Asher loves dinosaurs so of course we added one or eight to our jars. I let him put them in his terrariums but Auntie had to at least have one. Here is our completed project.

Whatever you choose to add for a little spice is up to you but go get creative. Maybe just a new green mini garden will help spruce up your room too. And its kind of fun knowing that you take care of a little living thing. Much easier than pets or kids I promise LOL. Show me what you’ve got!

Morning everyone. Hope you have enjoyed this first week of 2023. Overall, it has been a pretty great week for me. Work got a little dicey, but outside of work, I think I am crushing it so far.

I’ve got my new trusty planner and a new schedule that I have been sticking to. Really, I do enjoy having a daily routine. It takes off the stress of things because I know what needs to be done and when. I have added a few extra items to my daily list, and they are really improving my mood.

This month, I had planned to sign up for a new HotWorx membership. It’s $60 a month plus a one-time $75 enrollment blah blah fee. So nothing crazy, but I am cracking down on unnecessary spending. So, instead, I opted for an at home pilates app. For $15, I was able to get a 28-day plan to help jump start my daily workouts. The link for the website is below. It has nutrition, fitness, wellness, etc.

https://betterme.world/about

Gym memberships are great, but we all know that the first month of the year is crazy busy. Not to mention, if you are like me, the gym is out of your way, not on your regular route, and that means it’s an extra effort to get there. By doing a home workout, I am increasing my odds of actually making it happen.

I am on my feet all day at work, so by the time I get home, my body feels stiff and tired. After only 5 days of doing simple floor and wall based pilates workouts, my joints feel better, I am more limber, and my muscles albeit a little sore feel less tight and overworked. Most of the workouts are less than 30 minutes long, making them super easy and quick to do. The movements aren’t complicated, and you are using only your body weight.

There will come a time hopefully soon when the long intense cardio sessions will resume taking place. But for now, just getting into the rythym and moving my body is what counts. The saying is that a body in motion stays in motion. Now that I am moving, I plan to keep up the pace. Who’s with me? Even if it’s just a walk, the goal is to get you going! Let’s do this!

Probably not exactly the quote that you are accustom to hearing. The normal saying goes “New year, new me” but I have a problem with that. It doesnt apply if you like the person you are, which I do. I like the me that I have been working on for the past few years. None of my core values or my characteristics have changed but I have grown as a person and I am planning on doing the same this year.

Resolutions are firm decisions to do or not do something. There is nothing wrong with doing something that you have set your mind to. Discipline and follow thru are very important. I am sure many of us have similar ones in mind. Get in shape, eat healthier, make more money, spend less. Those are on my list too. In fact as I write this I just finished making a low calorie cabbage soup. Meal prep but also today it is just a bit chilly outside and soup sounded just right.

My goal/resolution this year is to grow this blog with bigger thinking. I want to have 100 posts by March/ April a sort of sprint for me. Not one everyday but a few per week. Goal is to have 200 by the end of the year. I would like to see my followers grow and I hope they will as I get into more content. I have some fun things coming up and I would love to hear what new things everyone has this year. Drop a comment if there is something I should try or check out!

Good morning and happy new year!!!! 2023 is here and it a cloudy rainy day here in Las Vegas. I for one didn’t get carried away last night, I not a fan of hangovers lol. I do hope that everyone had a fun safe night and can enjoy this lazy Sunday.

That fact that it is a Sunday for the day after all the partying is amazing. We get to have fun and then we get to relax. I am going to take the day to binge watch something on Netflix. Not exactly a productive start to the year but leading up to it has been non stop.

So let’s take the day, get rested up and then tomorrow we can get after 2023. So many blessings and adventures are head our way!! I can’t wait to see what 2023 brings!!!

Hey guys. I am sure you know that we just whizzed by Christmas and the new year is coming in hot! 2023 is just hours away and like most of you, I am excited going in to the new year. This year has had some great moments. It has also had some trying moments and learning moments. For some, I know it has been a very difficult and upsetting year. But like with every new day, every new year brings with it new opportunities. I’m not going to get into the things I have planned for this year, that is a whole different post. Instead, as I was thinking about 2023, I looked up the Chinese Zodiac and found that it is Rabbit.

It just so happens that my birth year falls within the year of the Rabbit. So I thought that it might be interesting to see what, according to the Chinese Zodiac, I can expect this year to bring me and us. According to several websites, the Rabbit is a “symbol of longevity, peace, patience, luck and prosperity” and for 2023 it is “predicted to be a year or hope.”

http://www.chinahighlights.com, http://www.chinesenewyear.net.

Hope. A simple four letter word that we can use on a daily, weekly or yearly basis in this case. It means to want an outcome that makes your life better in some way. I have hope that this year I can spend more time with friends and family, I can grow into a job I like for my skills, and that there is more money in the account at the end than the beginning January 1st. I am also putting hope in the people around me. I have a solid support system but I am hoping to add valuable people in my life. People who inspire me, encourage me, make me laugh. That is something to hope for in 2023.

This year, the rabbit will take more time to make decisions, not be as impulsive. This will give them the best chance to achieve their goals. I admit to having this problem. I jump into things quickly with out thinking about the odds or the steps that need to be taken. Taking that step back and making a game plan will help it move along more smoothly. Just dont get caught up in only the planning stages, you still need action.

Prosperity is also coming our way. I know with the way things are looking it might seem like a “yeah right” moment but think about what your definition of prosperity is. Prosperity defined is a condition of being successful or thriving. It is not limited to finances as long as you are growing. I am building more than a bank account this year. I plan to thrive in my relationships and in new skills. If we are talking in terms of business, businesses can grow in any environment if you can be flexible and creative. But you have to be looking for those opportunities.

Luck. I can only hope that luck follows us all around this year. And I mean good luck. Maybe you will find an unexpected financial opportunity. Or perhaps you will bump into a stranger randomly and that will spark a friendship or romantic relationship. I dont want to limit the things that can work in your favor. The thing about luck though, is that you have to be already moving in a positive direction. Put your thoughts and vibes on to the best outcomes, the greatest dreams you can. The universe will deliver.

I guess I might have gotten a bit fortune cookie here. Chinese Zodiac after all. But going into 2023, a new year sparks something in me. Just think if I had that same energy going into everyday what I could achieve. At least, as I finish up my cupcakes for the party tonight, my positive vibes are going and Im ready for the magic. Bring on the fireworks, bring on the new years kiss (excited to have someone to smooch this year? and bring it on 2023!! Lets kick some butt this year!! Have fun and stay safe, HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Yesterday’s birthday activities were pretty fun. Tried my hand at some karaoke. Managed not to hurt too many peoples ears. Some of the other girls, though, really like to hit those high off key notes. Needless to say, we had some music, some laughs and some goodies. And we did get all dressed up.

Going out and doing something out of the ordinary can really get the creativity flowing. It didn’t help with my other post I want to write, but it did help me get the ball rolling on another project. Writing this blog is the first little step to getting where I want to be. Let me explain.

Distracted is a word that really describes my hobbies or side hustles. I’m always moving to and from things, but they feed off of each other. At the center is my positive outlook on things, my creativity, and my want to connect with others and help them. I am sharing things that motivate me or inspire me, even things that just make me giggle. Someone out there likes the same things as me or can hear the same phrase as I do and take it to heart like I have. So, I will share it in another form.

That form is Etsy. Whenever some special event comes up or I need something custom, that is where I turn. So many others have created businesses making things or selling things on sites like this one. For now, I will be creating content that I personally would use on a daily basis, starting with goals and affirmations as we go into this new year. Everything will be printable from home.

I will build my Distracted Damsel brand thru blogging and creating new things for my shop. My hope is that my readers, friends or family might like some of my designs or inspirational quotes. Or maybe some planner pages or coffee cups. The possibilities are endless.

The one thing I will say is that it will only be a creative outlet for me. It isn’t my priority or my intent to sell to anyone. It will be there for anyone who can relate to my specific brand of, let’s just say eclectic. I will keep you all posted when it’s up and going but I’m excited to give it a shot. Weekend projects here I come!